Valved plumbing fitting



H. GRUEN 2,627,872

VALVED PLUMBING FITTING Filed April 19. 1951 Feb. 10, 1953 IN V EN TOR.HENRY GRUEN.

A TTORNE Y.

Patented Feb. 10,, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE;

' 2,627,872 p VALVED PLUMBING FITTING Henry Gruen, New York, N. Y. 7

Application April19, 1951, Serial No. 221,920

1 Y 1 This invention relates to plumbing fittings, and more particularlyto a water supply fitting for a bath tub with valve means for divertingthe water flow from such fitting to a shower fixture or attachment.

In such fittings as heretofore constructed, the water supply spout forthe tub is provided with a device which may be manually operated todivert the water fiow to a pipe leading to the shower attachment, andwhen the diverter is not in operation and the usual hot or cold watervalves, or 'both, are open, the water passes freely through the tubspout and no water rises through the shower pipe, but after the saiddiverter is manually operated, the flow of water through the spout isinterrupted and the water is'caused to pass through said pipe to theshower attachment and the water pressure is adapted to hold the diverterin this position after the initial manual operation and as long as thesupply pressure is maintained.

This arrangement has the disadvantage that the water cannot beconveniently diverted to the shower attachment until after aconsiderable amount of water has passed through the spout into the tuband an appreciable amount of water escapes through the spout to the tubeeven while the deflector is in operation, and moreover the closing ofthe usual valves automatically relieves the water pressure on thediverter device which must therefore be manually operated each time itis desired to deliver water to the shower attachment. These knowndevices have the further disadvantage that they are liable to causeobjectionable nois and wastage of water.

One object of the present invention is to provide improved divertermeans capableof being other object is to provide a rotary diverterdevice that may effectively prevent any passage of water through the tubspout while the shower is Y in operation. Still another object is toprovide a device which does not rely upon the water pressure to retainit in position for the supply of water to the shower, and which remainstightly in'position'even'after appreciable wear of the contactingsurfaces.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in thenovel construction and arrangements of parts hereinafter described,illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed outin the appended claims, it being understood that various minor changesin the form and construction may be made without departing from thespirit of the invention or sacrificing any of the advantages thereof.

5 Claims. (01. 1379-5516) Y In the drawing Fig. 1 is a longitudinalsection of a water spout with the diverter accordlngto the inventionembodied therein, Fig. 2 is aplan view of the spout, showing theextemalpperating means for thediverter, and Fig. 3 is acrosssection onthe line 33, Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, the spout I0. is internally screw threaded atits water inlet end H to receive an external screw thread on an enlargedend part l2 formed on an internal bushmg 13 that fits into an enlargedbore portion of the bore 20 of the spout, and the extremity of thebushing 13 at the inlet of the spout is internally screw threaded at l4for the reception of the external screw thread on the end of the usualpipe supplying the hot and cold water to the spout.

The bushing I3 is formed with a'downwardly tapered bore or socket forthe reception of a similarly tapered plug l-5 whose lower end isslightly spaced from the lower part of the said bore or socket, andacompression spring 2'] is interposed between the upper part of the plugI5 and the surface of the 'said enlarged portion I 9. The plug 15 has apassage l6 extending therethrough' and may be turned so that the saidpassage is brought into alignment with ports l1, IS in the bushing so asto provide free passage of water from the inlet pipe to the outlet endID of the spout. Above the plug IS the spout is bored for the receptionof a stem 22 and the upper end of this stem has a. squared end 23 forthe reception of an operating knob 24 which is secured on the stem by aScrew 25. The knob 24 is provided with a pointer 26 bearing the V legendShower" and adapted to register withfan indicator or arrowhead 21 moldedor formed on the upper part of the spout. Depending from the under sideof the knob 24 is a projection 28 adapted to engagewith one or other oftwo upwardly projecting stops 29, 30 formed on the spout, and thepointer 26, when in the position shown in full lines at Fig. 2, is inthe "Shower position and the plug It prevents the passage of water fromthe port [8 to the port I! and, when the pointer 25 is inthe positionshown in dotand-dash lines at Fig. -2, the passage I6 is in alignmentwith the ports I! and I8 and water passes freely to the outlet ID of thespout and no water is then supplied to the shower.

In operation the device may be set in readiness Y for the supply ofwater either to the tub or to the shower attachment and may remain insuch set position indefinitely.

If so desired the plug 15 and stem 22 may be horizontally disposed inthe spout instead of vertically as shown on the drawings and the pointer26 may be suitably modified.

Although the drawings and the above specifications disclose the bestmode in which I have contemplated embodying my invention, I desire to bein no way limited to the details of such enclosure, for-in the furtherpractical application of my inventionmany changes in form andconstruction may be made as circumstances require or experience suggestswithout departing from the spirit of the invention within the scope ofthe appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A fitting for the supply of water from a supply pipe to a bathtub andto a shower fitting or attachment, comprising a water spout casing, aninner bushing fitted in the inlet end of the casing, a screw threadedsocket in said bushing for the reception of the water supply pipe,aligned ports in the bushing, atapered plug mounted in said bushingbetween said ports, a passage in said plug capable of alignment withsaid ports,

a stem extending through the wall of the spout casing and attached tosaid plug and preventing relative movement of the said casing andbushing, an operating device attached to the outer end of said stem,means for indicating when said stem and plug are in position to preventthe passage of waterthrough the spout, means for limiting 'the rotarymovement of said plug and spring means between the end of the plug andthe spout casing'to hold the, plug tightly in position.

2. A plumbing fitting for the supply of water from a supply pipe,comprising a water spout casing, a bore in the casing for the dischargeof Water from the spout, an enlarged bore in the inlet portionof thecasing, a bushing fitted closely within said enlarged bore, ascrew-threaded socket in-the end of said bushing for engaging thewatersupply pipe and for supporting the casing upon said pipe, portsformed in the bushing in alignment with each other and with thefirst-mentioned bore, a rotary tapered plug valve mounted between saidports with its axis at right angles to the axis of said bushing, a waterpassage in said plug capable of alignment with said ports, and a stemattached to said plug and extending through the wall of said casing.

3. A plumbing fitting for the supply of water f-rom a supply pipe,comprising a casing for a water spout, a bore in said casing for thedelivery of water from the spout, an enlarged bore in the within's'aidenlarged bore, a collar on one end of said bushing for screw-threadedengagement with the water inlet end of said spout, a screwinlet portionof the casing, a bushing fitted tightly through the wall of said casingand serving to prevent relative movement of said bushing with respect tosaid casing, an operating device attached to the outer end of said stem,and means for indicating when said stem and plug are in position toprevent the passage of water through the spout.

4. A fitting for the supply of water from a supply pipe to a bathtub andto a shower fitting or attachment, comprising a bathtub spout casing, abore in the casing for the discharge of water to the bathtub, anenlarged bore in the inlet portion of the casing, a cylindrical bushingfitted .tightly within said enlarged bore, a screwthreadedrsocket in theend of said bushing for engaging the water supply pipe and forsupporting the casing upon said pipe, ports formed in the bushing inalignment with each other and with the first-mentioned bore, a rotarytapered plug valve mounted between said ports with its axis at rightangles to the axis of said bushing, a water passage in said plug capableof alignment with said ports, and an actuating stem attached to saidplug and extending through the wall of said casing to prevent movementof said bushing within said casing.

5. A fitting for the supply of water from a supply pipe alternatively toa' bathtub or to a shower fitting or attachment, comprising a casing forthe bathtub spout, a bore in said casing for the delivery of water tothe bathtub, an enlarged bore in the inlet portion of the casing, acylindrical bushing fitted tightly within said enlarged bore, anenlarged end part on one end of said bushing for screw-threadedengagement with the water inlet end of said spout, a screwthreadedsocket in the end of said bushing for engaging the water supply pipe andfor supporting the casing upon said pipe, ports formed in the bushing inalignment with each other and with the first-mentioned bore and with thewater supply pipe, a tapered plug mounted between said ports with itsaxis at right angles to the axis of said bushing, a water passage insaid plug capable of alignment with said ports, a stem attached to saidplug and extending through the wall of said casing to prevent movementof the said bushing within said enlarged bore, an operating deviceattached to the outer end of said stem, means for indicating when saidstem and plug are in position to prevent the passage of water throughthe spout, and a spring in compression between the spout casing and theend of the plug to hold the plug tightly in position in the bushing.

- HENRY GRUEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,741,521 Judell Dec. 31, 19291,898,952 Gray Feb. 21, 1933 2,507,467 Frederickson et al. May 9, 1950

